Back to Basics

[Robin4]

I have noticed a few posts lately from new hosts who have got into trouble by not understanding how to set up 'Pricing', 'Availability' and general description of their listing before they go live. The next thing they know they are in a situation where they have to cancel a confirmed reservation because something was overlooked.

I have spent some time today making a series of help guides that cover the listing and property description, and I hope these can be of use to some of our newer hosts.

To get to your listing editing  page, 'Log-on', slide across to 'Host' and from the drop down option box select....'Listing'

This screenshot is the first page you will see.....

Once you have set these items and saved them next move to the next page....Booking Settings!

After you have attended to these steps move on to the 'Pricing' page....

And lastly move on to the 'Availability' page.......

Now, if you follow these steps, it won't make you a great host, but it will stop you from making an elementary mistake that might cost you a considerable amount of money. 

I hope this can help some of our newer hosts.

Cheers.......Rob

[Susie111]

@Robin4 

Hi Robin,

what a fantastic post, great help!

Thank you.

l wish l had it when l started out a year ago😃.

[Emilia42]

Wow, @Robin4, it looks like you spent quite a bit of time! This should be very helpful to new hosts and some existing hosts as well.

[Robin4]

@Emilia42  @Susie111 

In fact I did spend a good few hours on this today but, I feel it is important. We are part of a community here and the reason for us all being here is to help each other. 

This is exactly the sort of advice I received 3 years ago from the senior contributors on the CC at that time. I owe my success to those guys.

I did put some effort into it but, I did it gladly, and I hope it doesn't just disappear into obscurity where it will be of no help to anyone!

This is aimed at beginners, but if there is enough interest in it, I will do another series to cover the more complex aspects of price setting, availability and listing seasonal staging!

Cheers......Rob

PS: Because I have had to fit a lot into each page I have had to condense the size! I suggest to those interested they go to the three dots in the top right corner of this screen, scroll down to 'Zoom' and increase the page size to 150%  to better read the page contents!

[Beth80]

@Robin4  Great, comprehensive post! This should be the first thing a new host sees. Great job!

[Robin4]

@Beth80 

Thanks Beth, your place looks great....I would love to stay there one day, I play a lot of Brazilian music on the piano and it is definitely on my Bucket list!!!

Cheers......Rob

[Jody79]

This is awesome!  We've definietly have made some rookie mistakes, but thankfully haven't had to cancel anything over them.  I am having to take a vacation day to clean up for a back to back booking that we weren't intending on though.  This would have been very helpful when we started up!

[Helen427]

R

obin@

Excellent post, it's great to have these little examples as guides for those who join Airbnb as either a Host or a Guest.

When I first started I felt a bit like a fish out of water as like others I wasn't so versant with all the computer icons used & didn't even click on them for whatever reason.

Ahh, about that smart pricing & 20% discount & then the "special offer" deals, yes that's a very important issue we all need to be aware of..

I'm sure there are others who have lost monies, and dignity, and been put off Hosting as a direct result of those click bait suggestions, especially when of has set prices to cover basics.

[Robin4]

@Helen427 

Like making a Pavlova roll I put a bit of effort into that Helen ;-))

You make a good point, when we start off we are hesitant about hitting/ticking boxes and icons we don't understand for fear of doing something wrong. I have just gone through it again listing on another platform.....it's all strange, I don't know how it works!

That was one of my motivations for doing this.....it is fresh in my mind how it feels not knowing!

I have seen first hand here in my local area where a new host is heartbroken because he could not understand the ramifications of using 'Pricing Tips' and discovered his payouts are for less than half his regular listing price. He is loosing money hand over fist!  He just thought the rest was still to come...naive yes, but he trusted the company thinking they were doing the right thing by him. 

New hosts need to stay right away from these marketing tools and I will keep stressing that!

See ya Helen!

Cheers.....Rob

[Ian-And-Anne-Marie0]

@Robin4 Fabulous informative post, a useful resource for newbies and seasoned hosts alike! Thanks.

[Rowena29]

HI @Robin0, I haven't had a chance to look closely but even the merest glance tells me that you have gone to a great deal of trouble to create soemthing that is extremely  helpful adn very user friendly

I will look more closely later - even though I created my lsiting some time ago I am always tweaking and there is always something to learn

I have to admit though that I feel rather cross that you even HAD to spend the time and energy creating this guide

It really shouldn't be  left to the initiative  generosity and thoughtfulness of people like yourself.  It shoudl be the platfrom supporting and educating hosts with a similar step by step guide

Like you already suggest I am  concerned that this WILL  get lost in obscurity - that would be a terrible shame.  I can imagine that few newbies will go looking in community forums for a guide such as this - naturally they would expect it to be provided in the set up stages or in the FAQ's

I am a fairly new host and I spent hours and hours and hours prior to creating my listing doing lots of reading and reseraching -on the platfrom help pages and links and on the community pages.   I found I spent a lot of dead time looking for things that should have been MUCH easier to find, or explained in more  specific detail - I remember for example you provided me with an excellent example of how to do a group booking - this  sort of step by step guide should be on the platform, not left to the vagaries of community members taking the time to answer (and sometimes not accurately). 

Thanks so much for your insights.

IMO this should be lifted and uploaded as a self help guide in the host start up section.

Now if you could just create somethign similar for the IT department to stop all those technical glitches which seen to be perenially occurring... ( the latest being an airbnb email  telling me to integrate my pre booking questions into my pre booking message - EXCEPT none of the updates/changes will save.....I"ve tried 25 times over 3 days...)

Cheers!

[Robin4]

@Rowena29 

Thanks so much for your kind words Rowena.

If I can just say one thing, this forum is not Airbnb and it is not run by Airbnb! The Community Centre is a collection of Airbnb users banding together using the services of a company that has been outsourced by Airbnb.

We are in this 'lifeboat' to help ourselves navigate the Airbnb oceans and rivers, we try our best to solve each others problems without having to get the company involved.....and that is why the CC is of enormous value to Airbnb, it takes a lot of pressure off the company.

The other thing is Rowena, the CC is the 'nuts & bolts' of using Airbnb.....we deal with issues on a daily basis that have not even crossed the minds of the people at 888 Brannan Street.

I don't want a whole lot of company  gloss and floss to wade through looking for answers....I prefer to get them here from these great people here who give up their time to post their knowledge, that is how I learned! If I gained my hosting knowledge from watching Q&A's and taking notice of Pricing Tips and Airbnb updates....my hosting career would have been dead in the water a couple of years ago!

I enjoyed starting this thread, my only sorrow is that the limitations of space meant I had to abreviate it so much. Right off the top I stated ......."In this section firstly give your listing a title and then in a sentence or two briefly describe it. You will be given a maximum of about 40 words (200 characters) so make it important, but brief".  I hope persons listing would not think that was it for the listing description. That only applies to the start of that section! I would like to have gone on to describe there will be plenty of space further on in the description to put in lots of detail about the property and the area.......but my hope is that once into that section the user would be prompted and understand this!

So, many spots where a few more words would have made a big difference.

Don't feel cross that the company didn't come up with this Rowena, it's our job and I learn every day here as well.

Cheers......Rob

[Lizzie]

Wow, @Robin4! What a great guide, this is fantastic and as others have said I'm sure this is invaluable to new hosts. Thank you for creating this. 🙂 

Once your topic has been reduce in traffic here in the Hosting board, I think I will more this to the our Tips & Tutorials board, as it is a super guide. Does this sounds good to you? 

[Robin4]

@Lizzie 

Thanks Lizzie, I did put a bit of time into that but, I truly think it can help and I was hoping it would gain enough regular traction here to keep it somewhere prominent for the time, like Harry from Greece with that wonderful hosting hints thread of his.

This was sort of a test case. If it went ok I would do a more advanced series of help guides for the more complicated aspects of promoting a listing and provide a lot more detail. I still have my company help templates from my time in support which are a lot more comprehensive than the pages of Community Help! 

I learned a lot from this one though Lizzie, and my only regret is there are sections of that I would like to modify but, once the 40 minutes are up...that's it, it is set in stone and no further editing work can be done.

I possibly do like your suggestion to move it to the 'Tips and Tutorial' board but my only issue with that is, nobody sees it, and can get an advantage from it on that board! While the 'Hosting' board has had 31,460 conversations.....the Tips and Tutorial boad has had just 55.

Dave principally and Clare did a wonderful job of putting some really great guides there but, nobody is coming across them. Hosts are saying on this thread how great this is and how it would have been wonderful to have this help a year ago when they started! That year ago was when Dave was in the middle of posting those threads, and all each one has is, one or two comments. 

The best advice in the world is no good if nobody sees it! 

Anyway Lizzie use your discretion as to what to do with this thread, I know you will work with the community's best interests in mind!

Cheers......Rob

[Vanessa803]

Hi Robin,

Thank you so much for being so selfless with your time!  I just published my site last night and even after all of the things I thought I understood, I am finding out that i really didn't.  I am so glade I found you!

Thanks again,

Vanessa